Has your company been balancing its content strategy with eye-catching visuals? You may have heard the phrase “visual storytelling” being tossed around in different business and marketing circles, but have you ever wondered what all the hype is about? We’re going to break down what visual storytelling is all about and how it contributes to the success of your brand.
Visual storytelling is a way to communicate a series of messages about your brand, products or services using graphics, images, and videos. While this might seem like the latest marketing fad, the studies of the human brain reveal that visuals are by far a faster, more impactful way for us to process information and are thus generally preferred over text alone. For this reason, visuals are an imperative part of your brand’s overall marketing and business strategy.
Quick facts on the importance of visuals in marketing:
- Half of our brain is dedicated to visual processing
- The brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text
- Social media posts with images or videos are 40x more likely to get shared
So, now that you have an understanding of why visuals in marketing are so essential, let’s discuss some of the ways that you can incorporate visual storytelling into your brand. Developing a clear visual storytelling strategy will be key in getting a good response from your audience on social media, as well as current and potential customers. Here are a few ideas for creating a visual story for your company:
A promotional series with the intent to make sales
Create a series of videos, visuals or better yet both, that tie together all the benefits of a particular product or service. You can build hype around a product launch by releasing visuals as a slow and steady drip leading up to the launch date. Perhaps you could include video customer testimonials, visual fact sheets, and product photos along the way. This type of visual story would be best housed on a social media platform like Instagram or Facebook, and on your website as part of a sales page. This way, you’re building the excitement via your social media platforms and also encouraging a sale to take place on your website.
An educational series with the intent to build expertise and leads
Another way to take advantage of visuals in marketing is to create an educational series that goes in-depth on a particular subject for which you are well known. The intent of an educational series might not be a direct sale, but more to build your expertise as a company, show your authority in the industry, and capture the interest of potential and future customers. You could host a video series on your website or even through a live video on a platform like Facebook. The best part, once you create a series like this, you’ll have an evergreen product that is always available.
Share a behind the scenes look at your company
It’s always exciting to get an idea of what goes on behind the scenes of our favorite brands. It creates a better connection with fans and potential customers when they are able to see the inner workings or the faces and personalities behind the company. Sharing profiles of employees, photos from the office or workplace, or perhaps quick video segments would be a great way to connect with your audience and help share the story behind your brand.
A few expert tips on sharing visuals:
Tip #1: Use jaw dropping photos that make you feel like you’re there, like Airbnb has done:
Tip #2: Connect with fans by sharing some of their best video moments interacting with your brand, like Nest:
Tip #3: Try to stay on brand with the visuals that you share, keeping the colors, fonts and overall look the same, or very similar. This way, your brand will become more and more recognizable as you continue to tell stories through visuals.
Ready to explore the art of visual storytelling in your branding? Be sure to contact the team of branding experts at Sabre Digital Creative today!